It will take one person getting hit on a trail and getting seriously injured for this to become a huge issue. We had an older woman get hit on a paved trail here in Spokane and now she is in the process of suing the man who hit her because she feels unsafe to frequent the trail. He wasn't on an ebike but i could see this scenario playing out on a MTB trail as well. I understand that bikers are already going fast down trails but now having them go fast up and down trails just increases the chances. Think of all the times that you have to pull over for someone climbing or descending. Now think if that person climbing was heading towards you at 15 or 20 mph instead of 6 or 7. I could see some collisions resulting from this.

Ya it was sure fun to find out that trek put 22.5 internal width rims on my 2017 Remedy when everyone else is going with wide rims and bigger tires... seems like they were trying to get rid of old stock..

I think it makes a difference. I came from road biking so I like to spin a high cadence when climbing but when it slows down and gets chunky I would struggle a bit with the round ring. I definitely think its helps with traction and getting through rooty rocky climbs.